Attila
Vegh needed less than half a minute to dispatch Travis Wiuff
in the Bellator Fighting Championships Summer Series light
heavyweight tournament final at
Bellator 73 on Friday at Harrah’s Tunica Casino in Tunica
Resorts, Miss. It was over 25 seconds after it began.

Vegh (28-4-2, 4-0 Bellator) clubbed Wiuff with an overhand right
and dropped the hulking Minnesotan where he stood. The Slovakian
pounced, battered Wiuff with right hands and forced the stoppage.
Vegh, a winner in eight consecutive bouts, will next face
promotional champion Christian
M'Pumbu for the Bellator light heavyweight crown.

“It will be a hard, hard fight, but I will be champion,” Vegh said.
“I’m ready to fight.”

Galvao and Nogueira (14-3, 4-2 Bellator) held nothing back. They
traded takedowns in the first round, exchanging punches and kicks
when upright. In the second, Renovacao Fight Team’s Nogueira
appeared to take control -- until a straight right hand from Galvao
sent him reeling. The World Extreme Cagefighting veteran followed
up with a left hook and knee to the body, closing the distance on
the wounded Nogueira.

A trip takedown came next, and Galvao moved immediately to mount. A
barrage of punches and savage hammerfists forced Nogeuira to his
stomach, and Galvao finished it with a series of elbows from the
rear.

Wessel Earns Split Nod

K.
Mills

Wessel outslugged Martinez.

Effective counterpunching, strong takedown defense
and unabashed aggression carried UFC castaway Mike Wessel
to a split verdict over Ryan
Martinez in a heavyweight showcase. Two of the three cageside
judges, Dave
Ferguson and Jason Herzog, scored it 29-28 for Wessel; a third,
Mike King, cast a dissenting 30-27 nod in favor of Martinez (7-2,
0-1 Bellator).

Wessel (12-4, 1-0 Bellator) backed up Martinez with right hands,
weathered a few takedowns and executed in the clinch in the closely
contested matchup. Martinez struck for takedowns in the first and
second rounds but did little to capitalize on them. That worked in
Wessel’s favor, as he remained in attack mode from start to finish
and punctuated his victory with a series of knees from the clinch
in round three.

“That was a tough fight,” Wessel said. “It was close. We went back
and forth.”

Much of the back-and-forth duel took place on the ground after
Mucitelli caught a head kick from Van Buren (5-1, 2-1 Bellator) and
put him on the canvas. Sweeps and reversals followed, with Van
Buren scoring with some stout standing-to-ground punches inside his
foe’s open guard. After a failed takedown attempt, Mucitelli
settled into bottom position and trapped Van Buren in the triangle.
Submission soon became the only option.

Uhrich Outpoints Spartan Williams

K.
Mills

Uhrich's constant scrambling shut
down Williams' wrestling attack.

A strong third round carried Andy Uhrich
to a unanimous verdict over former Michigan State University
wrestler Joe
Williams in an undercard tilt at 170 pounds. Uhrich (8-3, 1-0
Bellator) swept the scorecards by 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 counts, as
he won for the fifth time in six outings.

The two welteweights spent much of their encounter jockeying for
supremacy, Uhrich responding to a steady diet of takedowns from
Williams (6-1, 0-1 Bellator) with leg kicks, jabs and the
occasional combination. He threatened Williams with a guillotine
and a kimura in the third round, while also trapping the previously
unbeaten wrestler in a crucifix.

Overweight Tiller Still Undefeated

K.
Mills

Tiller schooled Oselukwue.

The unbeaten Kelvin
Tiller kept his perfect professional record intact, as he put
away Amaechi
Oselukwue with second-round punches in a preliminary
catchweight battle. Tiller, who failed to make weight for the bout,
brought it to a close 4:21 into round two.

Tiller (5-0, 3-0 Bellator) struck for a slam in the second round
and trapped his opponent beneath him, unleashing a string of
punches, elbows and hammerfists. He transitioned to Oselukwue’s
back and forced the referee to intervene shortly after. Oselukwue
(3-7, 1-1 Bellator) has lost six of his last seven fights.

Noe Stops Albin on Cut

K.
Mills

Noe hacked Albin's lip open.

Surging Team Vortex representative Jacob Noe made
the most of his promotional debut, as the Strikeforce veteran
stopped Brian Albin
with a nasty cut in an undercard duel at 205 pounds. The cageside
physician made the call in between rounds one and two.

Noe (8-1, 1-0 Bellator) opened the cut near his opponent’s mouth
during an initial exchange and never looked back. He later
delivered a takedown, attacking Albin (8-9, 0-2 Bellator) with
elbows and punches from the top. The volley enhanced the flow of
blood and led to the stoppage. Noe has won six in a row, five of
them finishes.

Alexandre Knee Wrecks Johnson

Keith
Mills

Alexandre's knee to the body
ended Johnson's theatrics.

Muay Thai convert Cosmo
Alexandre stopped journeyman Harry
Johnson on a second-round knee to the body in a preliminary
lightweight affair. The end came 39 seconds into round two, as
Alexandre (3-1, 3-1 Bellator) posted his third consecutive
victory.

The result, though decisive, was not without controversy. Referee
Dave
Ferguson, after initially ruling the finishing blow illegal,
appeared to check in-house replays for confirmation. They clearly
showed the knee strike to be aboveboard. He then urged Johnson
(6-8, 0-1 Bellator) to his feet, but the Tennessean was done.

Alexandre controlled round one with his superior strikes, many of
them kicks, and answered Johnson’s only takedown with one of his
own.